As some of you may know by now, I’ve had another little cherub to add to the family. Whilst heavily pregnant with her I decided to book us a holiday for when she would be approximately three months old.
So off to Greece we went, blurry eyed from the super early start at Gatwick, through to a holiday that I don’t think I’ll ever forget.
First of all, I should explain, I’m a serial “to do” list writer, organiser to the ‘nth degree and still find packing for a holiday the single most worst thing to do, possibly worse for me than child birth, and I didn’t have those easy.
So, I did begin to wonder why I had booked a holiday at all, but I needn’t have worried as our accommodation was just what we needed for our first family vacation as an awesome foursome.
Here’s the top 5 things I learnt:
1) Leave enough time at the airport, more than you think you’d need.
We had a very early morning flight and although the dearest husband whinged at me, it turned out brilliantly as even though we all had a bit of sleep catching up to do, the toddler handled it really well as the excitement kicked in that by the time we were actually on the plane, he knocked out!
2) Less luggage really is more comfort
I had toyed with the idea of taking the infamous sleepyhead but I’m glad we didn’t, as I had more hands free and with littlest babe in her sling, it made carrying my son’s backpack and the changing bag much easier.
Handy tip: Always pack a spare set of clothes for both children just in case. We were lucky not to need it but you never know!
3) Snacks are life
I became that parent who baked banana bread just before we flew out so we had plenty of snacks for the plane and in our hotel room. It was an amazing idea and was well and truly eaten before we got to the hotel, only silly me forgot to pop the individually, painstakingly wrapped slices into the fridge when we got there, suffice to say I had to chuck a good couple of slices away.
4) Carry more shorts than you think for a toddler or take some travel wash
My little boy loved the sea and sand so much that we had a couple of trip ups where his lovely new shorts got soaked, so thank goodness for back ups and also travel wash, as it meant not having to carry as much!
5) Ditch the postpartum body hangups
I’m going to be honest, the body has been through so much and first time around, my body was vastly changed by motherhood, this time it’s still different but I’m less upset by that. I just let myself not worry too much that I’ve still got my mum tum and tried not to look at some of the other mums with their gorgeous figures back because we all have a low days. I did get anxious about going to the beach but I needn’t have been as all my focus was on our little unit and I didn’t actually care what others thought and I wore what I felt comfortable in.
For anyone out there who has had a baby, be it now or three years ago, your body is amazing, just be conscious and happy with you decisions and speaking from experience, I’m soaking up this time I have with my second because I know full well how quick it went with my son, and how now looking back at pictures I remember myself being happy and not worrying about when the weight would shift. (It did in the end with him when I felt ready, and it will again in time)
And E N J O Y!
Extra top thing I’ve learnt and probably the most important, just enjoy it! I am fairly strict when it comes to eating good and nutritious food with my son, but on holiday, we were all on holiday, we ate healthily but we also indulged which meant he did too.
If you are considering a holiday with two kids, I recommend going when the littlest is still little as it really was enjoyable and meant my toddler got my attention too. Did we get sleep? Broken but my heart was full and complete.
Look out for the next blog post where I review where we stayed…
MATHURINI 